End mills (school me)

balibalistic

balibalistic

Joined
Jul 14, 2004
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Ok, i'm super new to milling in general.just got my mill/drill a few weeks back and am looking to pick up some endmills.i've been researching any and everything mill related and find it pretty overwelming.

What i'm interested in is picking up the most commonly used endmills for knifemaking applications...slotting SS,cutting interframes ect! i did pick up a 2" indexable endmill for trueing up my tool plates and whatever else i need to thin out.i also have quite a bit of 1/8" shank carbide endmills and stub drills but they're not large enough for anything serious.

What can you guys reccomend i pick up to get started?
 
I use 1/2" 4 flute carbide endmills more than anything. I get them in bulk and pay around $12 ea for good quality.

Tools you should be looking at are:

A good quality drill chuck
Drill bit set
Center drill/counter sink combo set

In general I like carbide cutters better than HSS. They cost more, but last longer (for me), and they give better finish and accuracy.

For shallow EM cuts in steel I like 4 flute better than 2. Twice as much wear, and double the feed rate.

Just my .02
 
Thanks Nathan!

i just baught a very nice rohm chuck,and have a lot of good carbide drill's!end mills are my main concern.where do you get 'em so cheap in that size?
 
You can find them at www.mscdirect.com Look for their specials. I would buy 1/8, 3/16, 1/4, 5/16, 3/8, and 1/2. These are the most common. If you have to choose a couple then you need to decide what you are going to do with them. the 1/4 and 1/2 are probably the most used. I would not use the chuck for milling. They are not set up to take the lateral loads. Use a good collet. You bought carbide drills?? they are really not needed unless you plan to drill a lot of hardened material. I have never needed a carbide drill. If I need to drill hardened material I plunge a carbide endmill. Milling takes a certain nack. You can have all the numbers and run the mill correctly and still break end mills. Break a few $15 carbides and it get expensive very fast. Take you time with the set up and you will get to the point were you can hear a good cut, and if you are havein problems.
 
Thanks AC!!

I baught an r8 full collet set with everything from 1/8 up to 1 1/4". i get all my carbide drills from 1/16" up to .250 for $50 by lots of 200.my not get them at that price :-) sure i break 'em..,but i got hundreds more :thumbup:

I think i'll pick up an hss end mill set just to try them out and as you mentioned,figure what i'll use most.
 
CARBIDE DRILLS?? Cool that is a great price. Not to be sceptical but are you sure they are carbide and not cobalt?? By the way save the broken carbide. They are giving like $12/lb for scrap...
 
100% positive they are carbide!! trust me,i've shattered many :o

I always find a use for the broken bits..,they all have 1/8" shanks and work great as test stop pins,new scribes and anything else i can find :)
 
Yup, sounds like you are getting a killer deal. That is cheaper than scrap.. .25 each it is even cheaper than HSS.
 
If these are what I'm thinking of, they're good condition, used surplus from the circuit board manufacturing industry. They're carbide, have 1/8" shank, and are available as drills, burrs and cutters. I've gotten them for 50 for $5.

They have high relief and clearance for cutting soft abrasive materials. They're basically router bits. They don't hold up great in steel, but they're practically free and the finish is good.

http://nathan.broadtime.com/profile_cut.jpg
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I've kept these around for years because when you find the right application for them, they work and cost almost nothing. Milling D2 was perhaps a bit ambitious, but it was already in the tool holder, so I used it. 3 blanks later it was trash, but so what...
 
OK, I have some of those. I did not even think about them as they have proven to be less than effective for me. I have not used them as a mill yet but then I am a forger. Nathan if you got 3 D2 blanks cut out that is impressive. I no longer ready have access to a CNC. As you pointed out in one of your posts, rigidity is very important for carbide to last longer than about 5 seconds. What Cam program are you using?? I have master cam 8.1.1....Though it does little good without a machine.
 
A C Richards said:
rigidity is very important for carbide to last longer than about 5 seconds.


What Cam program are you using?? I have master cam 8.1.1....Though it does little good without a machine.
Click to expand...


Especially with this carbide. They can adjust the toughness vs. wear resistance with the amount of cobalt binder they use. I think this stuff is formulated for hardness. And it is cheap stuff, so it ain't micrograin. And the cutting geometry is aggressive, for processing soft materials. It all adds up to a fragile cutter. I'm not sure you could hand feed the stuff and get many inches out of it in steel, never tried it.

Pro/NC CAD CAM
 
Yes,i have a fair amount of the small collared bits like you pictured.those are what i use for drilling all my .120 holes :) the larger bits are non collared and longer.from my experience the larger ones last far longer.
 
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